The Politics of Faith
Democrats kick off a multifront campaign to connect with religious voters
But Democrats and their advisers stress that the values offensive will backfire if it comes across as phony. "If Dean is not a person of faith, he should not talk like one," says Wallis, noting that the former presidential candidate, a member of the liberal Congregationalist Church, mistakenly said in a campaign appearance that the book of Job was part of the New Testament. Indeed, many conservatives are dismissive of the Democratic effort. "It can't be a case where they try to append the word God to . . . all their policy discussions," says Richard Cizik, chief lobbyist for the National Association of Evangelicals. "I don't think it will work until they change some policies."
Some Democrats are amending their positions. New York Sen. Hillary Clinton made headlines this winter by calling for fewer abortions and by asserting that the "primary reason teenage girls abstain [from sex] is because of their . . . moral values." In Pennsylvania, the national party is plugging antiabortion Bob Casey Jr. to challenge Sen. Rick Santorum next year. Casey's father--former Gov. Robert Casey--was blocked from speaking at the 1992 Democratic convention because of his antiabortion views.
Poverty. But the Democrats' polls suggest that most religious voters rank issues like child poverty above same-sex marriage and abortion. A recent presentation by the liberal National Council of Churches enlisted Democratic House members in promoting a computer program that helps poor people identify sources of federal assistance. "Let's not talk about this as political strategy," says McCurry. "My constant admonition is 'Talk less; do more.' "
A handful of new advocacy groups are talking and doing. A weekly planning conference call among progressive religious leaders hosted since last fall by the Center for American Progress, for instance, is now spinning off into a stand-alone group, the Faith and Public Life Resource Center.
Of course, the religious left is dwarfed by conservative groups like Focus on the Family, which has a mailing list of more than 3 million. And as the Democrats reach out to religious voters, they could risk alienating parts of their base, like Hollywood and pro-choice voters. "With all due respect to Jim Wallis . . . I don't want an evangelical progressive movement," National Organization for Women President Kim Gandy told an audience of liberal activists recently, "any more than I want the conservative one we have right now."
So making the Democratic tent big enough for religious voters won't be easy. But given last fall's election results, the party would seem to have little choice.
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